


Come to See Me Off?

by Chaosprincess



Category: Fear the Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-23
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2019-01-04 12:33:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12168963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chaosprincess/pseuds/Chaosprincess
Summary: What if Nick had chosen exile with Troy and Madison couldn't stop him?





	Come to See Me Off?

**Author's Note:**

> This is an AU! Dialogue as close to the show as possible.

**”Nicky?”** Troy said, astonished.

Nick sat in the back of the pick-up truck, kicking his feet like a child on a pier. He offered a toothy smile to his partner in crime.

 **”You should not look so pleased by your punishment, Nicholas,”** Walker growled, clearly displeased that he could not just execute them both.

Nick didn’t seem to have heard, or if he did then he didn’t care. Troy was too surprised to speak or move, which was the only reason he allowed himself to be shoved onto the bed of the pick up truck without any resistance.

 **”Come to see me off, Nick?”** Troy asked, surprise shifting into bewilderment, and slowly inching into horror. He had assumed that Madison would never let her precious baby boy suffer the same fate as a troubled kid she barely knew. 

**”He was offered a lesser sentence, since he convinced you to surrender. He chose instead to join you in exile.”**

_Chose?_

**_”Nick!”_** Troy whispered, pained.

 **”In or out, right?”** Nick replied. 

He was smiling, but Troy could see the heavy sadness in his eyes, that eternal suffering that had prompted Troy to nickname him “Poet”. He could see that Nick wasn’t being naive. He knew that exile would be no field trip for either of them.

 _But at least we’ll be together,_ Troy thought bitterly. 

**”You picked a fine time to choose _in,_ Nicky,”** Troy shot back with a bark of laughter.

 **”Enough!”** Walker snapped, gesturing to his men to bring over two stuffed backpacks. **"Provisions. To ensure that this isn't a death sentence."**

Troy rolled his eyes. This must have been Madison’s doing. Troy didn’t believe for a second that Walker would waste his supplies this way on Nick, let alone on him. If anything, they would have been made to fight over one bag.

**”You’ve each been given one knife, one gun, and one bullet.”**

**”And what are we supposed to do with one bullet?”** Troy asked.

 **”We chose exile over execution, if you find the later less onerous…”** Walker trailed off, no further explanation needed.

 _You, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?_ Troy thought. Well, he wasn’t about to do that to himself, and he certainly wasn’t about to do that to Nick.

 **”Ah,”** Troy replied, shortly before a bag was pulled over his head. He was more upset at not being able to read Nick’s expression than worried about where they were going. As the truck pulled off, Troy scooted around, feeling around for Nick.

Finally, when his back was against the cabin of the truck, their shoulders brushed.

 **”Can you hear me?”** Troy asked, into the roar of the wind.

 **”Yeah,”** Nick replied softly.

 **”What are you doing here, Nicky?”** Troy asked. **”You have some kind of plan?”**

 **”Yeah, to give your ass a fighting chance and keep you company,”** Nick teased. 

Troy paused for a long while, thinking about it.

**”Why are you doing this man…? What- you feel guilty for orphaning me?”**

**”I’m here because I care about you. I made a choice, Troy….I chose you.”**

**”Why?”** Troy asked sharply. **”It’s not like you did before.”**

 **”I did,”** Nick said firmly.

Troy set his jaw, wanting to argue. But he knew deep down that Nick was telling the truth. Nick didn’t have to stick by him, not after killing Otto. That night… the shootout… Nick could have walked away and Troy wouldn’t have bat an eyelash. He fought so hard to save Troy, even from himself.

 **”You shouldn’t have…”** Troy settled.

 **”Too late for regrets now,”** Nick replied nonchalantly.

**”You could have been home….safe with your family.”**

**”My family wanted to stick me in a metal box in the middle of the desert.”**

**”It wouldn’t have been forever… Knowing Madison it wouldn’t have been a day.”**

**”But then I would have to be at the ranch without you….”**

**”Would that have been so bad?”**

**”Yeah…”**

The rode mostly in silence after that, huddled together in the back of the truck-bed, with shoulders and legs brushing at every bump in the road. Troy remained as conflicted as ever over Nick. He felt guilty, which was a new experience for him. Nick was a grown man… younger than him, but grown. Why did he feel so responsible for getting Nick trapped out here? Then there was the strange giddiness that overtook him, seeing Nick…. Thinking about the pair of them, out here alone. It burned him inside, not being able to look at him, to see if Nick felt the same.

The car stopped, shaking as the doors opened and shut. Someone was climbing into the truck-bed. For Troy, the click of a gun being unholstered was a familiar one.

 **”There’s no need for that,”** Madison said, surprisingly calm considering that her own son was being exiled. 

There was a chuckle near Troy’s ear, and suddenly the world burst into light. Troy nearly choked on the air that he could now freely breath. Squinting, his eyes first sought Nick but instead fell upon the needle-necked First Nation man before him.

 **”She’s got a way, don’t she?”** Troy asked. **”White Witch of the Apocalypse.”**

 **”Let’s go boys,”** Madison said sternly

Troy’s eyes drifted to Nick, whose hair was all askew, damp bangs hanging over his eyes instead of slicked back like usual. Nick looked a little tired, maybe even car sick, but otherwise alright. He certainly wasn’t worried about what was going to happen to them.

**”So let me get this straight…. You don’t kill us now?”**

**”Don’t tempt me, I want to,”** the man beside them said, as if anyone gave a damn about what he wanted.

 **”But you gotta do what the woman says?”** Troy said mockingly.

If Nick was taking any offense to Troy’s taunting, then he wasn’t showing it. His dark eyes were fixed on the truck-bed.

 **”You’re being banished from your land,”** Madison said, voice wavering slightly at last.

_So, she’s not indifferent to Nick leaving…_

**”And you don’t think I can find my way back?”**

**”You won’t do that to your brother.”**

Troy gave a bitter laugh.

**”And Nick?”**

Madison never even glanced in her son’s direction. She kept her eyes fixed on Troy. Why was that? Was she ashamed of him? Maybe she wouldn’t be able to let him go, if she thought too hard about it.

 **”Nick won’t do that to me and Alicia,”** Madison said with confidence. 

**”You know, you are what my father would call, a real goddamn Pandora.”**

**”Cut them loose,”** Madison said curtly, turning to fetch their supplies from the truck cabin. 

The man set to work on cutting them loose. He freed Nick first. Troy watched as the younger man rubbed his sore wrists and shifted his legs to get more comfortable. Nick’s eyes were down. No fight in him at all. The man started cutting Troy’s hands free.

 **”What’s your name, Chief?”** Troy asked casually.

 **”Klah Jackson,”** the man replied, keeping his eyes on his work, determined not to let Troy get under his skin.

**”Well, what does that mean?”**

**”Left-handed.”**

**”And are you?”**

**”No.”**

**”It’s lucky that I’m a rightie cause -ah-”** Troy said, raising his sloppily bandaged left hand. **”Crazy Dog, he did a real number on my left.”**

And Troy, with all the ease of snuffing a candle with a pinch of his fingers, plopped his left hand over the knife that had just freed him. Klah Jackson had a moment of realization about an hour too late. Troy had plunged the knife into Klah’s neck through the back of his own hand.

 **”Troy!”** the Clark’s shouted, in perfect synch. 

Now he could see the family resemblance, but he went about his business. If nothing else got accomplished, at least he was taking one of these sons of bitches down with him. From his peripheral, he could see Nick curled into the corner of the truck-bed, the shock fading but he made no move to stop Troy from finishing the job. _He knows I’m right,_ Troy thought, taking a few more hits. The click of a newly cocked gun sounded behind him. A shot fired into the air, and Troy turned calmly to see Madison aiming at him.

 **"Hi!"** Troy said with an easy grin.

 **”No more killing!”** she commanded, as if she had that power.

 **”Filled your quota?”** he asked dryly. 

He tried not to look at Nicky, but like a magnet, his gaze was drawn to the younger Clark, who was huddled over with a haunted look in his eye, but even then there was a glimmer of understanding, of acceptance. Troy appreciated that. 

Troy stood slowly and hopped off the truck with his hands up. 

**”I don’t want to kill you,”** Madison stated.

**”Is that guilt?”**

**”What?”**

**”I know what you did.”**

He could see Madison swallow, but she didn’t flinch at the accusation. 

**”He had to die,”** she said quietly. 

Troy huffed, insulted that she would bother to sugarcoat it.

 **”And you, you let your son shoot him?”** Troy said with a hard edge that he couldn’t keep from his voice, as if that was the only real crime committed here. Not that Madison had planned to kill his father, but that she had let Nick do it. That she had soiled their friendship in this way. All that pain and sorrow on Nick's face lately, that had been her doing.

 **”Troy!”** Nick protested.

**”Stay out of it, Nick! You had your chance to explain. It’s her turn.”**

**”It should have been me,”** Madison admitted. 

She was wavering… her grip… her voice.

 **”Yeah, and why wasn’t it?”** Troy demanded, inching forward. **”What stopped you? What’s stopping you now?”**

In an instant, Madison was disarmed, the gun clattered onto the dirt and stones as Troy engulfed her from behind, threatening to consume her.

 **”Nick!”** Madison cried.

Nick scrambled from the truck-bed and darted for the gun, but Troy held no fear in his heart. He didn’t panic, did not release Madison from his hold. Nick picked up the gun. Troy smiled earnestly at his friend.

**”Gonna finish the job, Nicky? Wipe out the Otto line? When’s it gonna be Jake’s turn? Will you tell him that you killed Otto and me first?”**

**”I killed your father, Troy. You should be angry with me,”** Nick said, gun dangling limply by his side. **”It was all me.”**

Nick didn’t bother pretending that shooting Troy was under consideration. His apparent lack of concern for his mother's safety was impressive, probably troubling for Madison. _Good, she deserves it._.

 **”Oh please, Nick,”** Troy scoffed. **”If it was all you then tell me, when exactly did you decide that my father needed to die? Was it while he was teaching you to shoot? Was it while he helped you fix up Russell’s house to live in? Or was it after you already had a feeling your mom would do it?”**

Nick looked completely unshaken by this line of questioning…. In fact, his expression reflected exactly how Troy felt inside, unspeakably tired… of living… of all of this. 

**”Yeah… that’s what I thought,”** Troy muttered.

Nick looked first at Troy’s manic smile, then at the uncertainty on Madison’s face. Nick’s jaw worked, almost parting his lips to speak, but he closed them again, seeing how pointless all of this was. He turned back to the truck bed and walked over to the bags of supplies, slinging one over his shoulder. The gun trailed beside him as if it weighed a thousand pounds. He gave Troy an expectant look, but Troy didn't let Madison go.

**”I don’t surrender, Nicky... I don’t surrender…”**

Nick looked between them a final time, nodded to both of them, then turned and started walking. 

Troy and Madison watched him for a fair distance. Eventually, Troy yielded, releasing Madison entirely and scooping up his own bag and starting to follow. 

**”Troy,”** Madison called.

Troy’s eyes lifted to the heavens and he heaved a heavy sigh.

**”What Madison?”**

**”Look after my son.”**

He ought to have said no. He ought to tell her that her entire family could rot in hell for all he cared. But he was no longer interested in playing Madison’s mind games. She had taken so much from him already. He wouldn’t let her take Nick too.

**”I always do.”**


End file.
